Golf 2014

January can be hard for golfers who happen to live in the upper regions of the northern hemisphere.  Cold and windy weather means the golf clubs will spend some time in the closet while temporarily sidelined golfers content themselves with watching highly skilled golfers play tournaments on television.  With more young players rising to challenge the established professionals, 2014 will no doubt be a memorable year in golf.

The PGA Tour

The Hyundai Tournament of Champions in Kapalua comes around the first week of January in 2014.  The tournament is played on the wide open Plantation Course designed by Ben Crenshaw.  The vivid green fairways contrast with the surrounding deep blue of the Pacific make for some serious eye candy, especially for golf fans with a blanket of white snow just outside their front doors.  Even though the 2014 PGA Tour season started in late 2013, the Hawaiian tournament gets the juices flowing for another year of competition.  The 2014 field looks to be a good one with Adam Scott, Dustin Johnson and Justin Rose scheduled to compete.

The Majors

2014 promises to be another stellar year as far as The Masters, U.S. and British Opens and PGA are concerned.  The Masters in April is confirmation to the golf fan that spring really will show up once again and that Augusta National might be the prettiest tough golf course in the world.

The U.S. Open will be played on the iconic Pinehurst Number 2 course designed by Donald Ross.  Number 2 might be thought of as handsome rather than pretty with domed greens that would drive a 10 handicapper crazy.

The 2014 British will be contested at Liverpool’s Hoylake course, the scene of Tiger Wood’s last British Open win.  The course is one of the weirdest but interesting layouts with some out-of-bounds areas surrounded by the course.

Valhalla in Louisville, KY will host the 2014 PGA, the site of another dramatic major win by Tiger Woods.  The course was roundly criticized during the 2000 PGA but some tweaks to the layout should make it more amenable to the contestants.

The FedEx Cup will once again make the late summer and early fall interesting as players from around the world vie for the huge 10 million dollar jackpot that goes to the series points leader.

The LPGA

The LPGA is beginning to gain some momentum under the leadership of Commissioner Michael Whan.  New tournaments have been added and purses continue to rise as new business partners increase sponsorships while young stars from around the world are beginning to emerge.  Lydia Ko, the sixteen year old sensation from New Zealand, is a pro now and is set to battle it out against an almost bottomless pool of  talented golfers that includes; Inbee Park, Lexi Thompson, Paula Creamer, Staci Lewis, Suzanne Petterson and Michelle Wie. 

The Old Guys

For fans of a certain age, the over 50 guys on The Champions Tour continue to amaze with their skill and guile.  Fred Couples is always a fan favorite and rookies like Vijay Singh will keep everyone on their toes.